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Old 03-27-2013, 09:23 AM   #1
Phil
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Default Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I had found a company via the Internet Called Bradley Floor Pans in North Carolina. A little over a month ago I called and ordered floor pan parts for our 34 cabriolet project. Talked with Paul he was very nice and knowledgable. He had the parts in stock and charged my credit card the next day. The price was reasonable. After two weeks and no parts I called back he was not available but would call me back. He did that afternoon, said his shipping guy had been off, but the would ship that week ( that call was a Tuesday). Ok. Two more weeks have now passed still no parts called back told the lady that answered the phone my plight said she would have him call me back. Now no parts and no call back. Very frustrating. I don't know if any one else is reproducing these parts.

Have had similar problems with Howell Sheet Metal in the past. Are all the sheet metal repo guys flakey?
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Old 03-27-2013, 09:29 AM   #2
Bruce/CT
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Paul is a great guy. His shipping crates are a work of art themselves. His product is meticulous. His shipping time is awful as he will even admit. He will get you the parts but you will need lots of patience. My 36 floors took about 3 YEARS.
Good luck
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Old 03-27-2013, 09:48 AM   #3
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

My dad had the same experience with a set of floor pans for a '40 sedan. Dad kept calling every couple of weeks for a few months and finally got the pans. His description of the phone calls matches yours to a "T". Just stay in contact with Bradley, maybe "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" applies here?
Good luck, Paul J.
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Old 03-27-2013, 09:51 AM   #4
bills1020
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Paul is very personable. His days=weeks and his weeks=months. He may have the floors in stock but they might lack a final step in the production that he always says won't take long. His parts are top notch but his time is a little off.
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Old 03-27-2013, 12:01 PM   #5
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Gee... I got my floor pans from Paul in 1997 in less than 3 weeks & finally got around to doing the install in 1998. After reading above Im glad I ordered early His floor pans are top notch!!
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Old 03-27-2013, 12:05 PM   #6
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

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Paul is the nicest guy you would ever want to meet. I usually judge '35-'36 Ford's with him at the EFV8C/A National Meets. I think the floor pan business was mainly his Dad's thing and now he tries to keep it going but it's not his main business, as I was told. His floor pan's are the best going, but if you are in a big hurry you may have a problem.
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Old 03-27-2013, 12:06 PM   #7
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I ordered front half floor pans for my 37 sedan. About a year and three months later, He sent me a pair of full length floor pans. They are nice, just took a little time. I ordered them long before I actually needed them. Bruce
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Old 03-27-2013, 12:26 PM   #8
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I bought pans from Paul probably close to tenty years ago for a 1939 Ford.No issues back then with delivery etc as said before Paul is very nice and reputable but as I remember his main business was or was back then hotel management? Back then the only problem I had was with the 39 convertible I did not have the tunnel that Bradley does not supply and ultimately had to but another rusted donor. I always thought that floors of different years would be something Drake would have stamped in one piece,think the forty project included this. Carpenter probably never took it on Because of Bradley.They both could have stacked a lot of floor pans to ship from China but that one piece would have really been nice.
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Old 03-27-2013, 02:03 PM   #9
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Beware of Bradley. Charged my credit card and I waited two years until I caught up with him at Hershey. He swore on a stack of Bibles he would send me the pan. A year later he didn't show up at Hershey. Spoke to Don Smart, who used to do business with Bradley. He told me that he couldn't do business with Bradley and that he would intercede for me. Six months later I got the pan. It appears Smart had to use some sort of leverage on Bradley, but three and a and a half years and interest on my card I finally got the pan. Not worth the B.S. Pete/Ct
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Old 03-27-2013, 02:53 PM   #10
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

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Originally Posted by Pete/Ct. View Post
Beware of Bradley. Charged my credit card and I waited two years until I caught up with him at Hershey. He swore on a stack of Bibles he would send me the pan. A year later he didn't show up at Hershey. Spoke to Don Smart, who used to do business with Bradley. He told me that he couldn't do business with Bradley and that he would intercede for me. Six months later I got the pan. It appears Smart had to use some sort of leverage on Bradley, but three and a and a half years and interest on my card I finally got the pan. Not worth the B.S. Pete/Ct
Pete, "Beware"? Come on, man! Nobody ever had a problem with the quality of the product, he's the only one making them, and everyone eventually gets the pan. You may even have been told that Paul's delivery was slow as molasses. You being located just 600 miles from Paul, I'd think you'd make the trip to pick it up in person rather than fussing for three years?
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Old 03-27-2013, 03:45 PM   #11
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

My experience with Paul and the floor pans is Paul sells the floor pans and when he gets enough orders he will make them. No inventory and he knows when he makes them he has the money in the bank. Easy to do the math on his profit. Good for him and bad for the people that order the floors if your order goes in at the begining of the new batch. I ordered some half floor pans and he told me up front it would be aleast 2 weeks before he would have a good order for production and about a week for shipping. Six weeks later I got the floor pans just like he said.
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Old 03-27-2013, 03:50 PM   #12
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Do some searching on this subject here . You may find you are not the first person to have these issues . You may also find your issue is in it's EARLY infancy compared to others . Never done business with him so I have no personal opinion other than what I've read here . You will probably have many more posts like most above saying how great his product & he himself are but does that excuse him from good HONEST business practice ? David J
Quote:
Originally Posted by Phil View Post
I had found a company via the Internet Called Bradley Floor Pans in North Carolina. A little over a month ago I called and ordered floor pan parts for our 34 cabriolet project. Talked with Paul he was very nice and knowledgable. He had the parts in stock and charged my credit card the next day. The price was reasonable. After two weeks and no parts I called back he was not available but would call me back. He did that afternoon, said his shipping guy had been off, but the would ship that week ( that call was a Tuesday). Ok. Two more weeks have now passed still no parts called back told the lady that answered the phone my plight said she would have him call me back. Now no parts and no call back. Very frustrating. I don't know if any one else is reproducing these parts.

Have had similar problems with Howell Sheet Metal in the past. Are all the sheet metal repo guys flakey?
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Old 03-27-2013, 05:19 PM   #13
charles in east texas
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I ordered a set of short floor pans for my 36 coupe in September. He said he would ship next week. Two months went by, no pans, I called back, he said he would ship the next day, now it is the last of March, still no pans, he has my money and I've since sold the car.
He better hope he never runs into me, the bas$&&$. Charles
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Old 03-27-2013, 05:34 PM   #14
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I got a set of floor pans for our '39 Lincoln Zephyr Convertible Club Coupe from Paul Bradley last year. I did have to wait a few months for them to be delivered but, they are outstanding, I hope we can get them installed sometime this summer. I would not hesitate to do business with him again, I wish he made '53 Ford Convertible floor pans...
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Old 03-27-2013, 06:07 PM   #15
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Mr Bradly did return my call today from Monday ( I had called again this morning and told the lady it didn't seem a very nice way to treat people). He called and said he had not "fallen of the face of the earth" said he would work through this week end and ship it out. We will see what happens and I will let you know. Phil
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Old 03-27-2013, 06:42 PM   #16
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I bought 37 convertible sedan full floor pans from Paul Bradley twentyfive years ago paying for them when ordered,while waiting for them,Paul ran a sale in Hemmings which showed the pans I ordered $25.00 less each side.When I received the pans there was a check for $50.00.He is a great guy,plus there are no better floor pans than Bradley's.EPW
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Old 03-27-2013, 06:50 PM   #17
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I guess I'm too much of a cheep skate. I make my own floor patches. As long as I have enough left of an original to help me make the paterns, I'm good to go. If they were rusted gone I think I'd try to find an EFV8 member that would be kind enough to let me use their car for the measurements. If not I'd go by photographs and scale them up with known control points for measuring. I usually try to pay a better price for a car that needs less work in this department if I can. Time is not on my side. I definitely don't have the patients to wait on someone else when I can diddle fart as slow as they can on my own projects. They might not be perfect but they are better than the Flintstone mobile for sure.

It takes time to do this stuff. Mr Bradley would be ahead of the game if he could at least give the customer a reasonable schedule and then stick by it to a reasonable degree. He provides a service that a lot of other metal shapers out there can do and do quickly but his price may be a lot better than a "by the hour" man would have but I just have nothing to compare. He's not the only one out there that works this way either but It has been more often than not that he delivered, just not take your money and run. At least as far as I've always heard.
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Old 03-27-2013, 07:23 PM   #18
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I too have met Paul in person. He is a great guy and has the best intentions. The last I heard he was having difficulty finding a welder to replace the one that retired.

I honestly believe you will get your floor pans, but it may take some time.

I waited for mine and was well pleased...

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Old 03-27-2013, 08:58 PM   #19
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

Quote:
Originally Posted by charles in east texas View Post
I ordered a set of short floor pans for my 36 coupe in September. He said he would ship next week. Two months went by, no pans, I called back, he said he would ship the next day, now it is the last of March, still no pans, he has my money and I've since sold the car.
He better hope he never runs into me, the bas$&&$. Charles
Call him and explain to him exactly what is written above. I am certain he will apologize and refund your money. He truly is a nice guy and would not screw anyone out of anything. Lawson
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Old 03-27-2013, 08:59 PM   #20
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Default Re: Has any one had issues with Bradley Floor pans company ?

I got my pans for my 36 coupe after calling weekly for 6 months. Paul is a great guy and the pans were great, just frustrating waiting. He is pretty much a one man operation with a part timer helping him at night. I got the same story about his welder and he had a Nascar guy doing the one final weld on the 36 pans now. I was told by another vendor it is not legal to charge your credit card for the product if it takes more than 30 days to deliver the product.
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